A father is facing serious criminal charges after his one-year-old daughter tragically drowned in a hot tub during a family holiday in Florida, with police dismissing his explanation for the incident as "flimsy".
Father's 'Flimsy' Account of Tragic Night
Reynard Tyrone Hough, 33, from Washington D.C., told detectives he entered the master bedroom of the family's holiday rental between 2 am and 3 am on Saturday, December 13. He claimed he saw the child's mother and an infant asleep, and that his one-year-old daughter was awake and wanted to be with him.
Hough stated he then picked up the toddler and took her outside to the property's hot tub. In his interview with the Osceola County Sheriff's Office, he admitted he had been drinking and had ingested "two different types of unknown narcotics" earlier that night.
The Fatal Moments in the Hot Tub
According to a probable cause arrest affidavit seen by Law & Crime, Hough alleged he was holding his daughter when he fell asleep for approximately 20 minutes. Upon waking, he said he felt the child's "head drop" and immediately knew something was wrong because she felt limp.
Hough rushed inside the property on Nice Court, Kissimmee, and alerted the girl's mother, who called emergency services. Crucially, he did not tell her they had been in the hot tub or that their daughter may have drowned.
Deputies arrived just after 3:30 am to find the little girl unresponsive and "foaming at the mouth". She was rushed to hospital but was pronounced dead around an hour later.
Charges and Critical Safety Warnings
The criminal complaint highlights that Hough could provide no reasonable explanation for taking his non-swimming toddler into a 37-inch deep hot tub around 3 am in 55-degree Fahrenheit weather while under the influence.
He is now being held without bond at Osceola County Jail, charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child and child neglect with great bodily harm. The incident remains under investigation.
This devastating case underscores urgent safety guidance from organisations like the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA). Their advice is critical for UK families, as hot tubs have become a popular holiday rental feature.
RoSPA states that children under five should not use hot tubs. They urge parents to remain vigilant, keep a close watch on children near any open hot tub, and ensure it has a solid, lockable cover when not in use.
The society notes that between 2014 and 2020, there were six reported drowning deaths linked to domestic hot tubs in the UK, emphasising the dangers when children and alcohol are involved.
